


Unwanted Truth

by Driwed



Category: ONEUS (Band), ONEWE (Band)
Genre: Betrayal, Bullying, Cheating, M/M, Mystery, Secrets, driwed, oneus - Freeform, onewe - Freeform, unwanted truth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-10
Updated: 2019-07-10
Packaged: 2020-06-25 23:20:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 17,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19755817
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Driwed/pseuds/Driwed
Summary: WeUs Video Game MysteryThe twins decide to stay up late and play a video game they found in the dusty corner of their basement when cleaning up. A shocking surprise awaits them at the start menu...





	1. Myeong pov

I sighed heavily as we walked back home. I looked at Dongju who stared seriously at his phone. I took a quick peek then sneered. He was always like this, wanting things he could never have. I turned my attention back to my phone then snickered. He was utterly pathetic. I typed my reply then put my phone on sleep.

Our house came into sight, so I took the house keys out. I looked back and saw Dongju walking past our house.

"Yo, idiot." I shouted then frowned when he didn't stop. I rolled my eyes then jogged after him. "Ju, wake the hell up. We're home."

"Oh. Are you making dinner or me?" Dongju asked as we walked back to head inside.

"Eh, You can cook. Oh yeah, why don't we try out that game we found this past weekend?" I said before straightening out our grandmother's picture frame.

"Sounds good. Is it too much to ask you to help out? I always help when you ask." Dongju whined as he pulled out spices from the cupboard.

"Fine. What do you need?" I said as I leaned against the island in the middle of the kitchen.

"Just cut up the vegetables. That's all." he said before going back to rinsing whatever it was in the sink.

동동

I collapsed onto my bed as Dongju finished up downstairs. Both of our parents worked, so we were usually in charge of cooking and caring for ourselves. I eyed the game sitting on the desk and wondered how it even managed to make its way into the dustiest corner of our basement. The door opened and Dongju walked in with his head held low.

"Now what? Did Harin post another photo?" I teased then received a face full of pillow. "So I'm right."

"Let's just play this stupid game." he said as he angrily sat in his seat.

I took a seat next to him then placed the CD into the console. Surprisingly it still worked. It looked pretty normal and harmless.

"'Unwanted Truth'. Think it's a murder mystery?" I teased as I pressed the A button.

"Guess we'll find out." Dongju said as he sat back.

The wind blew roughly through our window, causing the curtains to flail around pathetically. Dongju tied up the curtains then sat back down. The screen was still black. Was it broken? I looked towards the window then noticed the curtains had started to flail around again.

"Oh, it's starting." said Dongju who nudged me.

"Weird, those two strangely look like us... and aren't those our friends too?" I said as I observed the title screen.

"You're right... I'm a bit disturbed. Let's not play it." said Dongju who placed his controller down.

"I'm with you on this one." I replied then pressed the eject button. "Weird..."

The disc wouldn't come out no matter how many times I pressed it. I looked at Dongju who nodded then turned off the system. The game continued to play.

"Unplug it!" I yelled then freaked out when the title screen never wavered. "What is wrong with this game!?"

"Maybe we're being forced to play... let's just follow along, okay?" said Dongju as he plugged everything back in.

"Okay..." I mumbled then picked up my controller. I pressed A and started to the game.

A black screen with white text soon appeared in front of us. We both moved our control pads and noticed only my controller responded.


	2. Discuss With Dongju

I looked at Dongju who stared at me.

"Should we view the tutorial?" I asked as the word yes remained highlighted and blinked.

"It's weird enough that we were on the title screen... I'm sure if we agree something bad will happen." Dongju said before looking back at the screen.

"What if there's important information? Do you really want to go into this blindly?" I asked, hoping he'd disagree.

"Fine, choose yes. I won't be responsible if something bad happens." he said with his arms crossed.

"Fine, we won't then..." I mumbled then chose no.

The screen was completely black and it started to worry us. Soon we were looking at a visual novel type scene. The background strangely resembled our room and two characters sat on a chair facing a TV screen. Just like us. I slowly looked at Dongju as I tried not to freak out.

"Ju... is the character on the left looking at the one on the right...?" I asked as my body started to tremble.

"Y- Yeah..." he replied slowly.

A weird noise escaped my throat as I was afraid to look. Something paranormal was at work. I left my seat then tried opening our door. It was shut tightly.

"What the fuck?" I blurted out then heard Dongju gasp. "What?"

"T- The character moved... and a text box... n- now its showing for the second character... and it's repeating everything I say..." he said as if he was about to faint.

I walked back over and sure enough, everything he said was displayed. It was scary yet intriguing. I sat down then picked up the controller.

"Let's see what we can do." I said then handed him the controller.

"Myeong, I can't do this... Play by yourself." he said.

The wind that had long since died down started up again, causing us to look. Dongju continued to state then held the controller.

"Let's play..." Dongju muttered.

I moved my character around and started to inspect things. It was scary how every little detail of our room was perfectly placed in the game. I moved my character over to the door and watched as he went through it along with Dongju's.

A phone started to ring and my controller was the one to vibrate. A text box popped up asking if I wanted to answer. I chose yes.

"'A text from Youngjo. Hey, you better stop before I retaliate.'. The hell?" I said then noticed I was given the option to write my own reply.

"Myeong... isn't that a bit cruel?" Dongju said as I hit send.

"It's just a game. Sure they mimic us, but it doesn't apply to real life." I said then read the text that showed up on screen. "'Minus fifty happy points with Youngjo.'. As if I care."

We moved our characters down stairs and saw our parents were arguing. What about was a mystery to us. Dongju's controller vibrates and he was given choices. He selected end the argument and ended up getting a slap to the cheek for being out of line. Though, he did get ten happy points for trying. What were happy points anyway? A part of me started to regret not asking for the tutorial.

"Hey, you got another text." said Dongju.

I viewed it then noticed it was from Yonghoon. I looked at Dongju who seemed just as upset as I was. Something seemed to have happened that he sent such a depressing text. I responded how I normally would then saw another text box appear above the chat.

"'Minus twenty happy points.' What? How was it a bad thing? This game sucks." I spat before pouting.

"At least you didn't get slapped..." he mumbled before moving his character outside.

I noticed a few things appeared on the screen. The date, time, weather and a tiny calendar. I went to the calendar and started to feel uneasy again. It resembled ours closely. I looked at Dongju who seemed just as uncomfortable. The time matched ours exactly. Someone new had walked up to our characters and soon a textbox appeared.

"'Hey, I was just about to invite you to a party, Dongmyeong. How about it?'. Uh..." I read then looked at Dongju.


	3. Going To A Party

I selected yes then freaked out when I couldn't see Dongju beside me. I reached out and felt nothing. I let out a strangled scream in hopes he simply moved far from reach. No answer. I looked back at the screen and watched as my character and our classmate drove off somewhere. The area started to look familiar.

"Seunghoon's? He doesn't throw parties suddenly though..." I muttered as I watched them get out and head inside. The interior was spot on as to what his home looked like. Even Seunghoon looked exactly the same.

"Yo. Managed to leave your idiot brother behind?" said Seunghoon.

I was given choices to use as a response. I went with "Naturally". The familiar pink colored textbox appeared, signaling Seunghoon had gained fifteen happy point and Dongju had lost that same amount. We ourselves had happy points? I really started to wonder what all we missed in the tutorial. I talked to the people present at the party then noticed Kanghyun flirting with Giwook. I looked around and spotted Hwanwoong not too far away.

The game seemed to have read my mind as choices soon appeared on the screen. I selected "Rat Kanghyun out" then watched as my character told Hwanwoong what he saw. Hwanwoong marched over to Kanghyun and a fight ensued. Giwook simply walked away. The pink textbox appeared. Kanghyun lost thirty happy point and Hwanwoong gained five. Giwook remained the same.

"What the hell are happy points..." I grumbled as I picked up the case hoping to find a pamphlet inside. There was none. "Just great..."

I looked up then noticed a timer had appeared. I apparently had three minutes until something happened. I looked around a bit more then exited the house. The timer ended. The pink box appeared.

"'You gain ten happy points. Harin loses five happy points.' Harin wasn't even there. This game cheats..." I said before wondering what my next move was.

I couldn't help but worry about Dongju. How were things on his end? Was he doing better or worse? My character received a text from Youngjo. I answered it.

Youngjo was utterly pathetic. He should be well aware that no one cared about him, at least not in school. Most of the school was against him. It was satisfying to see his tears fall and watching him beg on his knees. The pink box appeared just as the classmate who brought me stepped out to take me home. Youngjo lost another forty happy points.


	4. Dongju pov

I sat perfectly still as I looked at the screen. I couldn't figure out what just happened. A number suddenly appeared on the screen and it went from 100 to 85. Not too long after that I was robbed of all my money, sending the number down to 80. I couldn't see Dongmyeong who I swore was sitting beside me.

"Now what do I do...?" I asked aloud as it was pretty late out and most places were closed or starting to close.

I headed back into the house and saw our parents were no longer downstairs. I walked into the kitchen and saw that someone had left a pot on the stove with the fire on. I turned it off. Our parents gained five happy points. It seemed as if these happy points could be lost and acquire at any given moment. Well, more when a choice was made. My controller vibrated and soon my Snapchat opened, showing I had received a snap from Seoho.

I subconsciously bit the inside of my cheek as I looked at Harin in the photo. Without giving it much thought, I chose the nastiest option, blatantly telling Harin a clever lie and breaking his trust with Seoho. A pink box appeared and displayed the familiar yet unfamiliar happy points. Harin lost twenty, while Seoho lost ten.

"Maybe we should've looked at the tutorial... Knowing what happy points are and do would be helpful..." I said before noticing Dongmyeong's character entering the bedroom.

I looked to my left and saw Dongmyeong staring at the screen. I found myself lunging towards him and hugging him tight.

"What the hell, Ju?" he said despite having returned the gesture.

"You're okay... we're okay... right?" I asked as I continued to hug him. He hummed in agreement then kissed the top of my head. "What are these happy points...?"

He pulled away then sighed heavily.

"I don't know. Maybe it would've been explained in the tutorial, but it's too late now. There's not even a help or FAQ section. We're completely on our own." he said before widening his eyes. "Maybe we can see stats and try to figure it out from there!"

I nodded enthusiastically then looked along with him. I decided to try my phone then repeatedly tapped him. There was an app that said "Stats". I had my character tap on it then saw a list of people in our lives.

"Who should we look at first...?" I asked them looked at him.


	5. Info On Themselves

"Why don't we see what it says about us?" I suggested as I hovered over our names.

"I'm fine with that. Let's check you out first." Dongmyeong said then had me select my name. "High school senior who has a massive-"

"Don't..." I hissed as he didn't need to say it out loud.

"Anyway... lives with twin brother and both parents. Broke his leg at age 8 trying to help his brother..." Dongmyeong said then trailed off. I looked at him as it probably brought back terrible memories for him. "Scroll please."

I scrolled down and saw they included my blood type, weight, height and the like. At this point, I wouldn't have been surprised if it knew exactly the time I was born and what the weather was like. Beneath all of the information, there in big letters say the words, happy points. next to it was the number 80. There wasn't anything beneath or above it.

"Dead end?" I asked despite knowing the answer.

"Yep. Let's see if there's anything on my end." he said then went back to the list. He had me select his name, but nothing happened. "What's going on?"

I pressed A a few times then frowned when it was the same result.

"Did we just waste it?" Dongmyeong said in disbelief.

"Seems like it..." I said then found that we could still view my stats. I read over it carefully, hoping to find some kind of hint within it. "Hey, I don't remember that..."

"Remember what?" he asked then looked to where I pointed. "Oh? Did you really?"

"I sure I'd remember ruining someone's life." I said before rereading it.

I had apparently gotten a kid expelled back in elementary school. Naturally a person would remember that, especially if they were a part of it. It didn't make sense. Was the game glitching or simply adding in things for the hell of it? Those were the only plausible reasons since Dongmyeong didn't know about it either.

"This is just a thought but, what if it actually did happen...? You hardly remember much from your elementary days anyway." he said then looked at me.

"Let's just end the day." I mumbled while sending my character to bed.

We sat in silence as both our characters went to sleep for the day. The screen turned black and remained that way until the pink box appeared.

"Lives were changed today for better or worse. And worse is highlighted. Do you think it's talking about happy points?" Dongmyeong asked.

"I don't think so. Otherwise it would've stated. Don't overthink it. It's bad enough we're playing a game based on our lives." I said as my mind was still on the stats information.

The screen turned a light blue then revealed our characters standing in the bedroom with school uniforms on. I looked at Dongmyeong who happily hummed as he moved his character towards the door. My character simply followed. Whenever we were together, I never could move my character on my own. It strangely resembled real life a bit.

Our characters arrived at school and it seemed just like school in real life. I spotted our small group of friends then frowned at the sight of Harin. Though, Seoho was nowhere to be seen. I considered it a win on my end. I looked to my left and saw Dongmyeong and I had been separated again, but I could still see his character. Keonhee walked over to me then pulled me aside.

"I heard Hwanwoong and Kanghyun fought last night. No one said what it was about though." said Keonhee.

"Really? They're such good friends..." I replied then felt relieved Keonhee's happy points didn't change.

"I'm glad. Kanghyun deserved to get his ass beat. Me? I'd kill him if I wouldn't go to jail for it." Keonhee said with an upset look.

I was given two choices. Both responses seemed sketchy. Maybe I was overthinking it. I decided to go with "you're wilding". The pink box appeared. Keonhee lost five happy points.

"As if. I thought you understood me, Ju. Whatever, catch ya in fourth period." he said before walking off.

I stared at the screen as my mind processed the entire thing. Everyone knew Keonhee didn't like Kanghyun, but I never thought it was to the point he considered murder. What exactly happened between them? To this day only the two of them knew. I moved my character to class then sighed. Things would probably get worse from here.

동동

I yawned then noticed something had ran across the background. It looked like a person. My character excused himself to the restroom and followed without me doing anything. It was Youngjo who was running. Soon a group ran past me and followed after Youngjo. My character followed too.

I covered my face expecting some sort of bloody scene, then relax when they were simply just kicking him around like an old soccer ball. I was give three choices. I could help, turn a blind eye or get an adult. I found myself stuck between the first and last choice. I heard the selection confirmation then looked in horror as my character left the scene.

Youngjo lost fifteen happy points.

I groaned in frustration as it didn't give me time to consider pros and cons. No matter I did, my character never went back. I was back in class and learning as if nothing had occurred. Class finally ended and I was given a list choices. The list consisted of: cafeteria, roof or a classroom.


	6. To The Cafeteria

I quietly watched as my character packed up after choosing to go to the cafeteria. If it resembled real life to this extent, then my character was probably hungry. And if it was that similar to our lives, then Dongmyeong and Giwook should be appearing soon. Not too long after I thought it they appeared. Dongmyeong had also returned to my side.

"How was class?" he teased as our characters were apparently on auto pilot.

"The same as it would be in real life. Boring." I said then noticed Giwook had said something. "Hey, he's talking to you."

"'Remember what I said in class. Something suddenly came up, so I can't eat with you both.' Really... Typical. They even got his irritating personality right."

"You of all people should know him best. You're best friends for pete's sake." I said as we entered the cafeteria.

"I know... but he's always busy lately. It feels like he doesn't want to be friends anymore." Dongmyeong said while looking at me.

I could see the sadness in his eyes. I didn't think he was having any trouble with him. I didn't think he had any problems really. I sighed to myself then placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sure Giwook still wants to be friends. You both still talk don't you? If he didn't want to be friends, he'd be avoiding you and all." I said then noticed text had appeared on the screen that neither of us said.

Someone was talking to us. Or me, rather. It was one of our female classmates. We turned our attention to the screen to see what she wanted.

"Dongju, can I sit here?" she asked.

My character automatically replied with yes. I started to worry if I'd have any say in this.

"Dongmyeong, I don't mean to sound rude, but could you move someplace else? There's something I want to discuss with your brother alone." she said then giggled cutely.

I looked at Dongmyeong after choices appeared. He looked at me with slight annoyance. Did he want to stay or was he just upset with her?

"Ju-" he said then face palmed when the selection confirmation sounded.

"Don, wait-" I said then found myself alone again.

I looked back at the screen then nearly threw my controller in frustration. Dongmyeong had lost ten happy points just because I couldn't make up my mind. I watched her talk about herself and it started to bore me. My eyes widened when she suddenly told me she liked me. I looked and saw I had to type my own reply.

"I'm sorry, I don't see you in that way." I said aloud as I typed then hit enter.

I frowned as I had lost ten happy points. She stood up in anger then threw my lunch at me and stole my unopened drink. I lost five more happy points and I had no clue why. I had my character run out of the cafeteria and hole himself up in a bathroom stall like I would.


	7. Seoho pov

I rubbed my eyes and found myself asleep in a classroom. When did I fall asleep? I looked around then noticed Harin wasn't with me. I frowned heavily as he should've been with me. I left my seat and looked out the window. I freaked out when the sky suddenly glitched. How was that even possible? I ran my hand over a desk then freaked out when my hand fell through the desk.

"What the actual fuck?" I mumbled as my hand was now stuck in between. It glitched again and I was able to free myself. "Thank god..."

I left the classroom in search of answers. No one seemed phased by what was going on. Little glitches happening in the most random spots. Was I seeing things? I probably needed to see a therapist. I spotted one of my classmates then jogged over to her.

"Hey, Mai. Mai!" I said as I shook her arm. "Mai..."

She wasn't responding to me. Everyone knew how talkative Mai was. I waved my hand in front of her face then frowned when she simply stood there. I jumped back in fright as she suddenly moved and greeted me warmly.

"Mai, do you notice anything weird?" I asked then looked around.

"No...? You know, Rin was looking for you." she said with a thoughtful look.

"Where is he? Tell me where!" I said while grasping her shoulders.

"I think the library...?" she squeaked out before I took off.

I ran as fast as I could to the stairs and skipped stairs. I was tired, but I needed to calm the storm in my mind. I reached the library and almost swung the door open. I gently pushed the door open then looked around for Harin. I spotted him talking to Giwook. I hurried over then shoved Giwook over.

"Seo-" Harin started but I cut him off.

"We need to talk. Sorry Gi, I'll give him back." I said then pulled Harin from his seat.

I dragged him into the restroom then pushed him into a stall. He gave me a questioning look while I locked the door.

"Rin, did you fall asleep somewhere strange...?" I asked quietly.

"Hm... yeah actually. I woke up outside the school building. Someone in our class found me." he said with a thoughtful look. "I was certain I was asleep in bed last night."

"Me too. What time is it? How many classes did I miss? Do you see glitching?" I asked in rapid fire.

"It's about 12:50 now, so you missed five periods. And glitching? We're not in a game, Seo." he said with his arms folded.

"Right there! Look!" I shouted as the wall behind us started to glitch, giving me a glimpse of what was behind it.

"Seo, maybe you should go home... You're probably sick or something..." he said as he held my hands.

I pulled away from him then had him look at each spot that glitched. Each time he gave me a confused look. Could he really not see it? I felt tears prick my eyes as I started to worry about my mental health.

"Love, don't cry... It's going to be okay. You're just tired. Let's head back to library and I'll watch over you while you sleep." he said softly while holding my hands.

I quietly nodded as I buried my face into his chest. Telling him about Mai would probably only make me seem crazier.

"Maybe you're not tired..." he mumbled.

I looked up and saw a gaping hole in the stall door.

"You see it...?" I asked quietly.

"Clearly. Wherever we are probably isn't safe if it's glitching like this." Harin said as we exited the stall.

"We should let the others know, but for now let's keep quiet and observe more. I need to find Dongmyeong though. Will you still be in the library?" I asked.

"Until lunch is over. Be careful." he replied before sending me off.

It was relieving to know I wasn't insane, but it worried me that something bad was occurring right under our noses.

동동

"Hey, Myeo-" I said then stopped when I saw him stepping on Youngjo's head. "Stop that!"

I rushed over then pushed him off. Youngjo crawled over to me while trembling like a leaf.

"What the hell is wrong with you? Jumping on the bandwagon. Aren't you two friends?" I said angrily.

"Please, as if we ever were." he said sharply while glaring at Youngjo.

"What did he ever do to you? You two were practically inseparable." I said then looked at Youngjo who kept his head low.

"Why don't you ask victim over there?" Dongmyeong spat before turning to leave. "Actually, don't even bother wasting your breath on such a worthless person. At least I don't throw my closest friends under the bus to save my own skin."

I watched him walk away then looked at Youngjo who had started to cry at some point. Myeong wasn't one to lie, but I didn't really know much since they were already enemies when I became friends with the both of them.

"Youngjo, what did you do to him...?" I asked as I walked him to the nurse's room.

He remained silent minus the pained quiet sobs that crawled their way up and out of him.

"I didn't think it'd go that far... He trusted me so much..." said Youngjo before starting to sob full out. "I shouldn't have invited him. I fucking knew it."

I looked around in a panic as a few students gave us weird looks. I rubbed his back as he was now crouched with his arms covering his head. If anyone knew something about Dongmyeong, it'd be his brother, Dongju. Then again, Youngjo still might've had more to say. I could always butt out of things and go find Harin as well.


	8. To Dongju

I brought Youngjo's to the nurse's office then left. Rather than search blindly for him, I sent him a text in hopes he'd tell me before the lunch period was over.

I made my way downstairs then made a left. I picked up my pace as only a few minutes remained of lunch. I spotted him waiting across from the restroom then hurried over.

"Ju! Thanks for waiting. There's something I need to ask." I said while looking him in the eyes.

He quickly avoided my gaze, but gestured for me to say what I needed to. He always did this whenever I talked to him, avoiding my gaze and unnecessary fidgeting. It sometimes made me wonder if he was uncomfortable around me.

"What happened that made Myeong hate Youngjo...?" I asked then noticed Dongju was silent. "Did he make you promise not to tell...?"

"No. I don't know either. I was away for that week with my mom. She wanted me to enter some weird contest. When we came back, Dongmyeong was burning photos of him and Youngjo. The house reeked of burned paper." he said then sighed. "It worried me that our dad just let him get away with that."

I frowned heavily as I was hoping he knew something. The bell rang and soon the quiet halls were filled with chatter and laughter.

"Sorry that I wasn't of any help with this, but I'll gladly help you with anything else. Or at least try. Just call or text me." Dongju said with a grin.

"Uh, yeah... Thanks Ju..." I said then watched as he walked backwards while waving at me.

He bumped into someone but kept waving at me. It was a bit weird, but ever since I've known him he's been weird around me. The thought of him possibly liking me never crossed my mind. Not even once.

동동

I sat in class and found myself staring at the back of Harin's head. I looked to my side and saw Geonhak drifting off as usual. There was so much I wanted to discuss with the both of them, especially Rin. He was the only one who actually listened to me and gave sound advice.

The bell jolted me out of my thoughts and soon both Harin and Geonhak gravitated over to my seat.

"I could feel you eyes on me, Seo. What's bugging ya?" Harin asked as he sat in the seat in front of me.

"Why does Myeong hate Youngjo so much? Do you know?" I asked then glanced at Geonhak. "Do you?"

"Hwan might know. I think he went with them that night." Geonhak said before holding my hand. "Though, I'm not sure if he'll willingly tell you."

I sighed then let my head collide with the desk. I hadn't talked to Hwanwoong since the sleepover we had at the twins' place. That was well over two weeks ago. I jumped in fright at the feeling of my foot falling through the floor. I had forgotten all about the glitching.

"What's wrong?" they both asked with worried looks.

I tried my best to imitate a glitch in hopes Harin would understand. He nodded in understanding and told Geonhak it was just a bug.

"So, will you talk to Hwan? He usually hangs out in the computer lab before going home." said Geonhak.

"Definitely." I responded then glanced at the floor that continued to glitch.

동동

I poked my head into the computer lab then spotted Hwanwoong talking to Giwook near the back. I fully entered the room then walked over to them.

"Oh, if it isn't Seoho, the one Dongju lies for." said Hwanwoong with a snicker. "What can we do for you?"

"I heard you know what happened between Youngjo and Myeong. Is it true?" I asked, hoping he'd say yes.

"What would I gain from telling you?" he asked with a serious look.

"Oh, I don't know, maybe a bag of your favorite snacks." I said innocently then moved the bag from his reach. "Spill and you get the snacks."

He looked at Giwook then sighed heavily. He rose from his seat then dragged me off to where Giwook couldn't hear us.

"Myeong, Jo and I went out with a few friends to a party that was being held in some dingy place uptown. We were together for most of it then they suddenly disappeared from my sight. I asked around and some said they went off to fuck and others said they left. Didn't know what to believe, so I stopped asking. Just as the party was winding down, we hear screaming and soon Dongmyeong came flying out of nowhere screaming his head off and Youngjo soon appeared as well covered in red stuff. We weren't sure what it was, but..." said Hwanwoong before shaking his head. "We tried to get Myeong to talk but all he did was scream until he passed out. After that he refused to speak about it. Youngjo too."

My mind instantly jumped to the possibility of murder since he mentioned red stuff, but there were plenty of things in the world that could cause red stains. Even if Youngjo did commit murder, wouldn't he have already been arrested? I pushed the disturbing thought away.

"Here, you earned them. Thanks, Hwan." I said as I patted his back before leaving.

I always thought I knew the most about all of my friends, but ever since waking up in an empty classroom when I vividly remember falling asleep in my bed, things aren't exactly what I had thought them to be.


	9. Myeong pov

I stretched out then looked at Dongju who was nodding off on his seat. How long have we been playing? We were lucky enough to have some snacks and water stashed away in the bedroom. I left my spot and tried opening the door. It was still shut tightly. I looked out the window and found it strange that the sun wasn't rising like it should.

"I guess we're stuck in time or something..." I muttered as not even a faint cool breeze passed through the screen.

I looked back and saw Dongju had disappeared. Was something happening that I couldn't see? Or was it on my end? I walked back over to my seat then noticed Giwook had appeared beside me in the game.

"Eh, he wants to walk home together? Thought he was too busy..." I said to myself as I watched it play out.

"We need to talk. Well, more like I need to vent..." said Giwook as we walked out the school gates.

"What is it?" I asked.

"It's Hwanwoong. It's getting tiring and I'm this close to just saying something I'm going to regret." Giwook said in a sad tone. "And then there's Yonghoon..."

I frowned as I knew the deal with the both of them. It surprised me how long he managed to last this long without lashing out at Hwanwoong.

"Maybe you should be honest with Hwan." I said then dialed his number.

"Wait-" he said but I had already asked Hwanwoong to meet us. "Asshole."

Giwook lost 5 happy points.

I frowned heavily as I wasn't even given the choice of whether to call or not. The game was cheating. In my eyes at least. Hwanwoong soon appeared and greeted us warmly. I nudged Giwook who simply shook his head.

"Look, Hwan. Don't think ill of me, but you have to stop. I don't like you in the way you like me. It's getting annoying, like, I don't need good morning and good night texts. I don't need constant attention. I'm not interested in romance. Okay?" Giwook said then closed his eyes. "I do want to be friends, but if can't accept this, then maybe we're better off as strangers."

A part of me felt like I had just witnessed a breakup despite them never being together. Hwanwoong covered his face and started to laugh. Giwook and I looked at each other in confusion and worry.

"I get it. It's because of Yonghoon isn't it?" Hwanwoong said then revealed his tear stained cheeks.

"Hwan-" I said then was cut off by him.

"I don't fucking get it. What about that severely depressed man do you like so much? Honestly he should just die if he's so fucking miserable! In fact, I just might do it myself and make it seem like an accident. I-" Hwanwoong said then was instantly silenced by Giwook's fist.

"Don't act like you know everything because you don't. Let's go, Myeong." he said then pulled me away.

"Are you sure you want things to end like this? I still have that to use against you, Gi." Hwanwoong said while babying his cheek.

"Go ahead. Expose me. At least it'll help me learn who my real friends are." Giwook spat.

The pink box appeared. Usually the results appeared instantly, but this was moving painfully slow.

Giwook lost twenty happy points.  
Hwanwoong lost thirty happy points.

I sighed as I needed to start keeping track of who lost and gained what. I looked at our characters and wondered if Hwanwoong would really expose Giwook for the lie he created.

"Are you sure you're okay with this?" my character asked.

"They're going to forget about it within three weeks. I'm not worried. Though, I am worried about Yong. Should we go over to his place?" Giwook asked with obvious worry in his tone.

"You can go. I have a few things I need to do." I lied then watched him take off.

I wasn't close to Yonghoon like Giwook and Ju were. In fact, they were the only two I knew that were close to him. I heard from Ju that he had stopped attending school for a week already. I pushed the thoughts aside and headed back to school, hoping I wouldn't run into Hwanwoong. I was given two choices, one which said head to the courtyard and the other a classroom.


	10. The Courtyard

I made my way to the courtyard then noticed someone familiar sitting alone. I walked myself over to him then sat down.

"Oh, hey. You don't usually talk to me unless there's a problem. So, what is it?" he asked softly.

"Do I really? I apologize." I replied then received a smile in return. "So, why are you out here by yourself? Aren't you usually with Seoho and Harin?"

He nodded then leaned back on the bench.

"They've been sneaky all day today, so I figured I'd give them space to sort out whatever it is. What about you? Aren't you usually with Gi or your brother?" asked Geonhak.

"I was with Gi. Some shit happened and he took off for Yonghoon's. I have no idea where Dongju is and we always walk home together so I can't leave." I said then looked at him. "So here I am."

We sat in silence. Geonhak was also a part of our friend group and was usually the overlooked person because of how silent he was. We treasured him as when he did speak, all his words were wise and soothing. A part of me hoped he wouldn't change, but seeing from what had already occurred in the game, Geonhak may not be who he appeared to be either.

"Hey, have you talked to Keon lately?" he asked out of the blue.

"No. Does he owe you something?" I asked in reply.

"Not really. He seems... different. Did you see his latest tweet? I know how he feels about Kanghyun, but I think he said a bit too much. They fought for a while then stopped." he said then showed me the tweet.

It was pretty brutal. If I were to put an image of how it went into someone's mind, it would probably look like a bloody battle between two bloody people holding bloody knives. The image didn't sit well with me. I looked at Geonhak who seemed just as worried.

"I worry for the both of them. What if they actually get physical? What if weapons do get involved?" he said in a slight panic.

"Well, there's not much we can do other than keep them apart." I said.

The pink box appeared. I sat completely still as I waited for the results to show.

Geonhak lost ten happy points.

"Who's to say they won't meet up without us knowing? Like now?" he said with an upset look.

"Geon-" I said then was cut off by him.

"Honestly Myeong, don't you ever think of anyone but yourself? Do you ever think and plan ahead? There's a lot going on outside of that bubble you keep yourself in." he said angrily before leaving.

I honestly had no idea what I said wrong. Geonhak wasn't the type to get upset easily either. I took out my phone then remembered the stats app. I opened it and looked through the list.

"Maybe I shouldn't decide on my own..." I said then looked to my right. Dongju hadn't come back. "Guess I am on my own."

I closed my eyes then repeatedly scrolled up and down before pressing A. I opened my eyes and saw that I was able to view someone else's stats. They were Giwook's stats. I didn't bother to read the information as I probably knew everything that was written there. I scrolled to the bottom and checked his happy points. 75. I lowered my head as I still had no idea what happy points were. Were they important or was it like a love meter you see in dating sims? I decided to read Giwook's information despite not wanting to previously.

"Highschool senior... best friend Dongmyeong, no siblings... Oh." I said as my eyes landed on the next sentence. I blinked in silence as I didn't think the game would know. "How much does this thing know..."

I read past it and found the rest of it to be even more horrifying. I knew he had a traumatic childhood, but it seemed as if he didn't tell me the entire story. I could see why he didn't. How he was able to stand strong the way he was now was beyond me, but I internally applauded him for it. I continued to read and knew that he wasn't interested in romance, but I now knew the reason why.

"He never told me he had a lover before... Wow. To think both happened at the same time... I really don't know anything about him." I said then felt a weight on my shoulders.

Geonhak was right. I hardly paid attention to anything outside of my bubble. I didn't deserve to call myself Giwook's best friend if he didn't feel I was worthy enough to know his story. I covered my face as I tried to keep myself from crying. Little did I know that the pink box had appeared and displayed a loss of happy points.

Dongmyeong lost twenty happy points.

I wiped my eyes and was presented two choices. I made my selection.


	11. To Youngjo

I wiped my eyes again then moved my character around. My mind was now set on finding Youngjo. I didn't know why he first came to mind, but he did. Did he already leave school? I roamed the halls, peeking into empty classrooms in hopes of finding him. I walked up the stairs then noticed him walking past and into a classroom. I quickly followed him then stood in the doorway.

"Dongmyeong... I-" he started but I was quick to type out a reply.

"Get on all fours." I typed angrily.

Youngjo lost ten happy points.

I didn't give a shit. I was upset and he was the perfect punching bag to take it out on. He got on all fours and kept his head lowered.

"Look at me." I said then snickered at his pathetic look. "You really are spineless aren't you?"

"If I go against you, I'll suffer worse." he said in a whisper.

"You're learning." I said then sat myself on his back. "You'd make a great pet."

He kept silent. I glanced at him before I started to bounce. It intrigued me on how he tried his best not to make a sound. I stood up then squatted in front of him.

"You know, I never thought things would end up like this. Surprisingly, I'm glad they did. Taking my frustrations out on you feels pretty damn good." I said as I held his face. "You're going to be my punching bag forever."

"You don't mean that..." he mumbled then let out a yelp when I flicked his forehead.

"Shut up. No one cares about your opinion. I'm surprised anyone in this fucking school is still friends with you. God, just looking at you makes me want to vomit." I spat before releasing his face. "Your parents should've abandoned you."

"That's going too far!" he yelled back.

I shifted my gaze to him and he started to tremble terribly. It didn't take much to get him that way.

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" I asked politely while gently holding his face.

"I didn't say anything..." he said then let out a short pained scream. "Please, stop..."

I hovered the pen close to his eye then waited. I was giving him a chance to come clean.

"Come clean and maybe you won't lose your eyesight." I threatened.

"I said that's going too far... I'm so sorry... Please..." he begged.

"Lie back." I commanded then nudged his leg. "Good. Now close your eyes."

He closed his eyes. He really was obedient. I looked him over then decided. I lifted my foot then stepped hard on his crotch. It was just as painful and less messy. Youngjo curled into himself while keeping quiet. It was surprising how quiet he's been. Was he practicing at home? I squatted down then stifled my laughter. Tears were streaming down his face.

"Painful enough? Better than having a pen stabbed into your eye?" I asked as I patted his arm.

He slowly nodded then let out a disgusting sniffle. I noticed I didn't feel as upset as I used to. Youngjo was useful in his own way.

"Thanks, Jo. Now I'm not in such a pissy mood." I said then prodded his thigh with the pen.

"Myeong..." he weakly called out. His pitch had risen as well. "Don't go..."

I looked at him in utter confusion. After everything I just did, he wanted me to stay? I was convinced he lost his mind. I slightly freaked out when he suddenly held my hand. I quickly pulled away.

"Rot here for all I care. Bye." I said then quickly left the room.

The familiar pink box appeared. I quickly pressed A as I didn't want to see it. I didn't need to know. It was obvious he lost happy points. The hand he touched started to tingle. I could also feel it in real life. I freaked out and dropped the controller.

"What's wrong Don?" I heard Dongju say from beside me.

I whipped my head in his direction then found myself hugging him tightly. Everything about this game was freaking me out. Where was the end? I wanted it all to be over. Dongju held me in his arms as I started to cry. I was starting to feel the immense pressure and responsibility from it all.


	12. Keonhee's Diary

My eyes fluttered open and I found myself in a room. I sat up on the floor then crossed my legs. A book sat on the floor in front of me. It didn't have a name or much of anything besides a heart that had long since been etched out. I didn't recognize it either. I opened it and saw the initials L.K. It could mean anything. I turned the page then panicked when it suddenly started to flip by itself.

"Weird..." I muttered then felt my phone vibrate.

Harin had sent me a message. He was asking about my whereabouts. In all honesty, I didn't know myself. The last thing I remembered was taking a nap in his bedroom. The book finally rested on a page. I attempted to go back a page then hissed when it gave me a paper cut. I decided to leave it alone and read from where it stopped.

" _'I was looking forward to going over to his place a few days ago. I hoped a little overnight stay would deepen the friendship we already had. It was fun. I only remember up to a certain point though. Or maybe I don't want to remember. They do say the body protects you from stressful things. Maybe if I think on it more, I'll remember. - Keon'_. This was a few days after Keon and Kang stopped talking..." I said then noticed a flower pot sat against the wall on my left. "That wasn't there before."

The pages flipped and landed on another page. This one seemed to be about Geonhak.

" _'This is the fourth time I've caught him in the restroom stall at school. And each time he was vomiting. I started to realize it happened after lunch ended. I don't want to assume anything, but it could be that... He had actually caught me this time and I had never seen him so... worked up. I swore to secrecy, but it's not much of a secret now that it's written down. - Keon'_. That can't be right... He's never left our sight." I mumbled then realized there had been times when he disappeared. I frowned heavily as I hadn't been very observant of my friends. "I hope he's okay now..."

The pages flipped once more and stopped on another page. I couldn't quite figure out who it was about.

" _'I caught him staring again and it was hilarious to see him freak out. I couldn't believe after all this time he was still pining after him. When will he get it into his head that he doesn't want nor need him? It makes me laugh at how stupid he could be at times. Though, a part of me is envious. Envious that he has someone that he's willing to do idiotic things for. - Keon'_. Is it Hwanwoong...? He's the only one we know that's pining over someone..." I thought while trying to piece it together.

I yawned then noticed then page only flipped once. It was about me as my name was the first word on the page.

" _'Seoho's a pretty damn cool guy. Got himself a great boyfriend who everyone basically swoons over. How they ended up together is beyond my comprehension. I wouldn't say they're total opposites, but their personalities don't really match. Though, if there's anything I don't like, it's his nosiness. God, you don't need to know everyone's business. And his skepticism too. God, how the hell did Harin fall in love with this guy? - Keon'_." I read then tried to shut the book.

How many more unpleasant things were written in this book? I didn't want to find out, but the book wouldn't close. Instead, it cut my fingers and turned to the next entry. It was about Kanghyun again.

" _'I hate him. I hate him so fucking much. I trusted him with everything. Yet he easily... I can't stand the thought of it. One day, I swear I'll return the gesture to him, but with more force. I want him to feel the pain I felt. The feeling of death calling your name and cold beckoning you into its arms. My head pounds as I write this. Maybe I should sleep early today. One day, Kanghyun. I'll kill you with my own hands. - Keon'_. Keonhee, what happened... why won't you say it?" I asked, feeling stressed out. "You stupid book, tell me what I want to know. What happened!?"

The book simply flipped its pages. I no longer felt like reading. Learning what terribly upset Keonhee was more important. I yelped in pain as I received another cut. It wanted me to read.

" _'What's the deal with Yonghoon anyway? He sleeps all day and somehow gets by in classes. When someone compliments him he immediately accuses them of being liars. Sometimes he came in smelling like a dumpster. A part of me hoped he simply fell into one. He hardly hangs out with anyone. If it weren't for Giwook and Dongju, he'd probably be long gone. He should just drop out. - Keon'_." I read then reread it. Depression. That was the best explanation. "How serious is it now if this was written two months ago..."

I sat patiently expecting it to flip its pages again. Nothing happened. I didn't want to risk more paper cuts in case I wasn't allowed to turn the pages. The pages soon turned.

" _'Dongmyeong is a grade A asshole. I'll admit, poking fun at Youngjo is fun, but going as far as physical abuse? No thanks. I would say something, but let's be honest. Adults don't care and not do others since they don't want to be next or associated. Myeong used to be such a cute kid. Times does change a person I guess. Wishing Youngjo the best. He'll need it. - Keon'_. Keon you jackass. Why don't you do something? You're just as bad!" I raged then noticed more objects in the room.

There was the flower pot, a scale, a piece of paper that simply read "Thomas", a partially cracked down the middle plastic heart, a butcher knife, a pill bottle and a clear sphere. They were all pretty random and had nothing in common with each other. When did they all appeared. Just as I looked to read another page, I lost consciousness.


	13. The Pill Bottle

I awoke in a hospital, but I wasn't the one lying in bed. I walked over and found it to be Yonghoon, but younger. I wasn't sure if he was asleep or unconscious. I looked around and spotted a clipboard off to the side. I looked at it and started to read.

"Nearly drowned huh... that's traumatic." I muttered quietly.

The glitching had followed me here as well. Though, if it was a game then that was to be expected. I walked back over to Yonghoon then placed my hand atop his. It went right through him. There wasn't a glitch. I wasn't able to touch him. The door opened and a nurse had walked in. She acted as if I wasn't standing opposite of her.

"Am I invisible...?" I said aloud.

The nurse wasn't phased. She left the room and not too long after, Yonghoon opened his eyes. They looked lifeless. I could feel the intense sadness radiating off of him. The door opened again and two people I've never seen before came in.

"Yong, you're awake! We've been so worried... you were unconscious for a week!" she said slightly teary.

Were they his parents? I continued to watch in hopes of learning.

"Where's my mom... my dad...?" Yonghoon asked slowly.

They looked at each other then back at him. Something had happened and the looks on their faces weren't good.

"They're in a better place now... we heard your mother worked hard to keep you alive..." said the woman while holding Yonghoon's hand. "Auntie and uncle will take care of you now."

Yonghoon looked towards the ceiling in silence. I felt myself cry at the sight of his tears. Losing his parents at such an age probably did a number on his mental state. I wanted to hold him and tell him things would slowly get better. That good things were waiting for him in the future.

The area slowly turned to black and I found myself whisked into another setting. It looked like the inside of a house. I soon heard voices and hurriedly went towards them. It was his uncle watching TV. I heard a door close then watched as an older Yonghoon walked down the stairs.

"I'm going out." he said a bit slowly then waited.

And waited. And waited. He didn't say anything else and kept walking towards the front door.

"Don't die or whatever." his uncle shouted just as Yonghoon started to close the door.

I had noticed something was off with his uncle when I first saw him with how he kept his distance. Where was his aunt? Did she die? The scene started to shift and the uncle was no longer watching TV. Yonghoon had come back looking more tired than when he left. I found myself following him upstairs. He knocked on a door before entering.

"What?" she said sharply.

"I'm home." he whispered.

"What? Speak up child. How many times have I told you this? Your parents were too soft on you." she hissed then shooed him away.

He closed the door then entered his own room. Click. Yonghoon locked his door. I stood in front of his door, wondering if I was able to go inside. I put my hand on the door then watched as it went through. I stepped all the way in then stepped back. His floor was littered with clothes. You couldn't even see his desk. The scene turned black then I found myself in the living room again. This time both were hovering over him.

"You don't have time to cry over something small like this. This is what happens when you don't focus on studying." his aunt fussed.

"Look, I give you a lot of freedom, but you brought this upon yourself. Your aunt's right. Just focus on studying." the uncle said with a shrug.

"How could you say that...? She meant a lot to me..." Yonghoon said through his tears.

"You should've ditched that girl when she fell ill. Then it wouldn't hurt as much. We don't have time for this. Go pack up. We're going to visit family." his aunt said sharply then watched as Yonghoon dragged himself upstairs.

It was awful. They didn't care about his feelings and never gave him the comfort he needed. To top it off, he lost a precious friend. A few random scenes started to play out and each was just as unpleasant as the second scene I was shown. If they didn't want to care for him, why did they agree to it? It didn't make sense. I felt something touch me and I immediately blacked out.


	14. Myeong pov

I pulled on the door but it wouldn't budge. I tried using a chair, but it didn't work. How could we get out? We were starving. I looked back at Dongju who lied on his back with his eyes closed. He was too calm for my liking.

"Hey, why don't we get someone to bring us food?" I suggested then dove for my phone.

I dialed our mother's number and waited.

"Why are you calling me during school hours?" she scolded.

I had forgotten the time. I quickly apologize and hung up. I was so used to the night sight outside our window I had lost the concept of time. We couldn't call any friends as they were still in school.

"Wait, Ju. Did Yonghoon go to school today?" I asked while shaking him.

"Yeah. Gi and I convinced him. At least in the game. And seeing as how it resembles real life, I'm sure Yonghoon went in real life as well." he said with his eyes closed. "We also plannedto help him with other things."

I groaned in frustration then lied back as well. We sat in silence with the exception of our growling stomachs.

"Hey, how many days do you think passed in real life?" Dongju asked.

"Well, seeing as how the game is tied to real life, probably 2. Though, we're ahead a day in the game." I said then felt him hold my hand.

"You know, if someone were to tell me I'd get stuck in some paranormal game with my brother, I wouldn't have believed it. I don't know what the future holds for us, but as long as I'm facing it with you, I don't care about the outcome." said Dongju who then flopped on top of me.

"You're being unnecessarily sappy today. Did Seoho ask you out?" I teased then received a pinch on my cheek. "So no."

"Can't I just randomly show my brother affection?" he whined.

"Do whatever you want. Let's take a break and collect ourselves." I said then felt Dongju shift his position.

"I'm taking a nap." he said.

"Not on me." I hissed but couldn't find the heart to move him.

I let out a sigh then gently stroked his hair before wrapping my arms around him. He was my precious younger brother. No matter what mean things I said and teased him about, I still loved him. I hardly directly showed it, but he never really complained either. We were strange that way.

동동

I opened my eyes and found Dongju lying next to me instead of on top. I felt around for my phone but couldn't find it. I rolled over then cursed as it had gotten kicked far from reach. I figured Dongju still had his on him, so I patted him down. It was missing. I didn't want to leave his side, so I dragged him with me. My phone was dying. I took the chance to call Youngjo.

"Hey, I need you to bring some food and snacks to our house stat. Drinks too. You better find a way to pay for it if you can't." I said before hanging up.

I walked towards the desk then set my phone on the charger before it died. I lied back down next to Dongju then internally sighed. I wanted the game to be over. I missed living in my own little world. The sudden realizations and changes were too much. Dongju rolled over and draped his arm over me. Everything seemed less scary when he was by my side. He opened his eyes and looked at me.

"Did we...?" he asked.

"Whatever you're thinking, get it out of your head." I scolded while sitting up.

"I was just going to ask if we moved in our sleep..." he mumbled before sitting up as well.

Embarrassment occupied my cheeks. I hid my face from his sight.

"You okay?" he asked softly.

"Yep. Food's on the way, so just hang on a bit longer." I replied as my cheeks cooled down.


	15. Myeong pov

Our characters walked into school and the hallways were terribly quiet. They looked at each other and had Dongju find out what was going on. We watched them hurry back out and towards the courtyard. There occurring right in front of our eyes was a fight.

"It's Keon and Kang... Seo and Rin are doing their best, but maybe we should help." said Dongju with a worried look.

I observed the two from afar then noticed Kanghyun wasn't putting up much of a fight than Keonhee was.

"Hey, stop dwaddling and pick a side." Dongju hissed.


	16. Kanghyun's Side

"I'll help on Kang's end. Wish you luck with Keon." I said then moved my character over to help Seoho who held Kanghyun back.

They managed to keep Keonhee still despite him frantically moving around. The crowd started to disperse, leaving us six in the courtyard.

"Keon, why can't you just talk it out with him?" Seoho asked as Kanghyun simply remained still in my arms.

"Why? Who in their right mind would want to talk to their assailant? What more is there to say other than he wants me dead?" Keonhee barked before glaring at Kanghyun. "Kill him before he kills me."

We all looked at Kanghyun who hasn't said a word the entire time. Was it guilt? I heard a loud groan then noticed Dongju and Harin had ended up on top of Keonhee.

"Get off! You're heavy as hell." complained Keonhee.

"We can't trust that you won't hurt him." Harin said. "Kanghyun, what's the truth here? Did you really assault him?"

We quietly looked at him. I peered into his face and noticed he was crying. I wasn't expecting that.

"I didn't mean it... it was all an accident. Believe me, Keon." he said in between sniffles.

"So you admit to it!" Keonhee said in a slightly strangled voice. "I knew it!"

"He said it was an accident! The man is crying for pete's sake!" Seoho shouted, surprising everyone. "Just let him speak. It's better to know everything."

Kanghyun had gone limp in my arms. A part of me worried he had passed out.

"You okay...?" I asked quietly.

Kanghyun gained five happy points.

"Just a bit dizzy..." he mumbled before standing up without my help. "What I'm going to say is the honest truth. You're free to believe me, or not."

We patiently waited as he wiped his eyes. A part of me didn't want him to speak if it was that distressing.

"We we're heading back to my place at night and as usual, Keon was bouncing around and being goofy. I was holding a flower pot, one of the bigger ones that you usually see by the front door. So my frontal vision was limited. Keon warned me about a bunch of stairs, so he went in front of me to help. As we were getting situated to walk down, I was spooked by a leaf and..." he said then trailed off. He looked at Keonhee with immense remorse. "I was so scared... you were just lying there unmoving..."

He started to break down in tears. We all except Keonhee had gathered by his side. I know what it felt like, feeling guilty for hurting someone else, especially someone close to you.

"Kanghyun..." we heard Keonhee say. "I... I guess I remembered wrong..."

"What do you mean...?" asked Kanghyun through his tears.

"I thought you were waiting for me to get into position to push me..." he mumbled while looking away. "I'm the one who should be apologizing, especially after all the death threats..."

We quietly watched as the both of them shared a teary hug.

Kanghyun gains fifty happy points.  
Keonhee gains fifty happy points.

I looked at Dongju who seemed happy with the results as well. A part of me wondered if things would've gone a different way had I decided to side with Keonhee. The pink box appeared again and the rest of us had gained five happy points.

"I feel good inside..." I mumbled then felt Dongju nudge me. "What?"

"Maybe we're nearing the end? When the climaxes finally come and endings are decided." he said cheerily.

"I wouldn't bet on it." I said with a sigh. "Pretty sure we've missed the beginning of first period at that."

Despite having said that, I was happy that our torn friend group was slowly starting to heal. Soon a text notification appeared and it opened up to a Youtube video. I looked to my right and saw Dongju disappeared. I looked back at the screen and read the title.

"Student Sextape... No. No, no, no, no. What is he doing!?" I said in a frustrated tone. I accidentally refreshed the page then noticed the video was no longer available. "He's teasing..."


	17. Finding The Culprit

I sighed heavily then hurried into the school building, ignoring the others' shouts of confusion. I had no idea where he was lurking, so I followed my gut, which led me to the lab upstairs on the top floor. I poked my head inside and saw him sitting in one of the seats as if waiting for someone.

"You." I hissed as I stepped into the room. "What in bloody hell was that about?"

"Oh, an uninvited guest. So I did send it to the wrong person." he muttered before turning his attention to his phone.

"Liar. You don't accidentally send such a video to someone. Whatever you have, permanently delete it." I said sharply while reaching for his phone.

He continued to keep it out of reach until someone had walked in. We sat in silence until Hwanwoong broke it.

"Nice of you to finally join us." he said with a smile.

"I was in class like I should be." replied Giwook who stayed by the now closed door. "You're really going through such lengths to make me yours, huh?"

"I'm simply saving you from a failed relationship. You should be thanking me." Hwanwoong said slightly ticked off.

"Thank you for what? Blackmailing me into a relationship? That's basically a failed relationship too. Why can't you let go?" Giwook asked with a tired look.

"I don't want to." he said then moved his phone from my reach. "Sit down you animal."

He sent his knee into my stomach and I collapsed to the floor. It hurt like hell.

Dongmyeong lost ten happy points.  
Giwook lost five happy points.  
Hwanwoong lost five happy points.

"Was that necessary? Look at yourself, Hwan. You've changed. This is why I never wanted to say anything. I knew it wouldn't turn out well, but this is beyond what I imagined. I honestly don't know what you have that you'll expose me with, but I doubt it's anything damaging." said Giwook with a shake of his head.

"Oh really? Then... I guess you'd love for the entire student body, no, the entire world to see this." said Hwanwoong before holding up his phone that played a video.

Giwook's face turned pale and he strode frozen like a statue. Hwanwoong chuckled before pausing it. I managed to crawl over to Giwook's side and catch him before he collided with the floor.

"Where on earth did you get that...?" Giwook asked hoarsely.

"From you. Indirectly. Amazing what you can find from snooping around." he replied then spun in his seat. "So, do you still refuse?"

I quietly watched as Giwook left my arms and slowly walked towards Hwanwoong.

"That's right. Come into my arms, love." said Hwanwoong softly.

What happened next occurred so quickly. I found myself hurrying over to them and pulling Giwook away.

"Gi, stop!" I shouted as his grip on Hwanwoong's throat was tight. I could barely pry off one fingers. "Gi!"

I bit him on his neck then sighed in relief when he released Hwanwoong. Shortly after, Giwook let out a small squeak, his usual reaction to being bitten.

"So you're... willing to... kill to keep it hidden, aren't... you?" Hwanwoong asked in between gasps.

"Permanently delete it. Now." Giwook demanded, regaining his usual composure.

"Will you kill me if I don't?" challenged Hwanwoong.

"So be it." Giwook said in an icy cold tone.

I felt like a useless extra. I couldn't do much ever since I arrived in the room. I was his best friend, yet here I was, cowering behind him.

"Hwan, just do as he says. It's hard accepting that the person you like rejected you, but doing this is just going to make him hate you. You don't want that, right?" I asked, hoping to fix the situation in any way I could.

"What do you know, narcissistic asshole? How are you going to stand there and tell me what I want? I'm the only one who knows what I want. " he said before showing us the deletion of the video. "I only deleted it because I don't want to be strangled to death..."

He left the room without another word. I looked at Giwook who pulled away from me.

"Maybe we should rethink our friendship..." he said then left the room as well.

My character stood there watching the door that they left out of. I started to feel upset and depressed again. This game was awful. It was bringing light to things that were better kept in the dark. Bringing them out only strained the already frayed bonds between us. I covered my face as I didn't imagine it ending this way.

Hwanwoong lost forty happy points.  
Giwook lost sixty happy points.  
Dongmyeong lost sixty happy points.

Maybe it was for the best. Maybe he needed someone like Seoho, caring, nosy, generous, organized. I really wasn't worthy of having friends in the first place with the shitty personality I developed over time.


	18. Note 4

I sat in the library after school hours reading a book that I had recently gotten into. I felt someone touch me then gently call out my name.

"Oh, hey." I said then moved over a seat.

He sat next to me and started to read along. Nothing was said between us, until I felt his hand on mine. We looked at each other and I couldn't help but give him a warm smile.

"How were classes?" I asked as I turned the page.

"Same old, same old. Though, I do enjoy the one class we're in together." he said while rubbing circles on the back of my hand.

We sat in silence once more then were startled out of peaceful moment by someone coming over. We had quickly separated our hands in the process of moving further apart.

"So you were here the entire time? Hey, do you mind if I borrow him for a second?" a classmate asked.

"I don't mind, we were just reading anyway." he said with a half hearted smile.

I headed off towards the computer section in the library and saw that she wanted me to help her with a logo design. I glanced towards the tables and internally sighed. We already didn't have much time to spend together.

"Hey! Are you paying attention?" she asked.

"Huh? Yeah, just... change it to navy blue." I said then watched as she made the change.

"Wow, that looks so much better. Thanks, Rin!" she said then gave me a hug.

I looked back towards the tables then watched as he stared back at me before leaving his seat. I gently pried her off then hurried after him.

"Where are you going?" I asked while holding him back by his shoulder.

"I need to get going..." he mumbled before pulling away.

"Don't lie to me." I hissed.

"I'm jealous, okay? Just leave me alone..." he said before walking away.

I sighed heavily then held him by his wrist firmly. I dragged him down the hall and up the stairs towards the roof.

"Rin-" he started but I cut him off with a "shh".

I pushed the door open then pulled him to where watchful eyes couldn't see. I didn't give him any time to protest against the kiss. We easily melted into each other and hungrily wanted more. He pulled away then playfully hit me on the arm.

"You know better... we shouldn't be intimate at school..." he said with a pout despite a blush being present on his face.

"You're adorable when you blush..." I said then kissed his forehead.

"Stop... it's embarrassing." he muttered, but didn't pull away.

"I promise you this. After we graduate and attend college, I'll be all yours." I said while holding his face.

"Are you asking me to wait?" he asked with pursed lips.

"Yes. Can you?" I asked, well, more like pleaded.

"Okay..." he said before sighing.

I pulled him into an embrace and spun him around. He made me happy and willing to do stupid things for him. Just seeing his face could brighten up any day.

"I love you, Dongju." I said softly.

"I love you too, Harin." he replied before giving me a peck on the lips.


	19. Late At Night

I looked at the screen then sighed heavily. The weekend had finally come about in the game. Real life? I didn't know. Food and drinks would sometimes randomly appear in the corners of the room. The first time it was concerning, but at this point we didn't really care. It was surprising that no one was worried about us. A part of me wondered if we were replaced. I found my character roaming around and I was pretty bored, so I called someone.

"Hey, meet me at the park by the school." I said then hung up.

I moved my character and made my way to the park. I made a stop before arriving there before he did. I twirled it in my hand as I waited. Did he have to live so far? I was getting impatient.

"There you are." I said, rising from my seat on the bench.

"I came as fast as I could..." he said while panting for air.

"Well it wasn't fast enough." I spat then slapped his forehead. "Sit."

We sat on the bench in silence. It felt different, kind of like... the old days. I pushed the thoughts aside then looked at him.

"I want to hurt you." I said sharply.

"Then what's stopping you? Nothing stopped you before." he said with a tired look.

I flicked his forehead and found myself feeling relaxed yet irritated at the same time. So I flicked him again.

"Are you feeling sick? This isn't like you..." he said with concern then placed his hand against my forehead.

I slapped his hand away then rose from my spot. I didn't get it. Over a year worth of torture and pain and here he was, asking about my well being and being kind to me. It made me feel sick.

"Stop it, stop it, stop it! You're not supposed to be nice to me! You're supposed to fear me and beg for your life!" I yelled in confusion. I threw my unopened water bottle at him before crouching and trying to hide. "You're supposed to hate me..."

"Why should I be upset when I'm the reason you're like this? If anything, I deserve this. That's why I never complain." he said quietly. "So, do your worst."

I looked up then felt upset again. I stood up then shoved him off the bench.

"Why? Why did you do it huh!?" I shouted while kicking him just about anywhere I could. "Why?"

He didn't say anything, so I dug through the plastic bag and pulled out a knife I had hidden inside. That seemed to have caught his attention. I pointed it towards him then slowly approached. As expected, he backed away.

Dongmyeong lost fifty happy points.  
Youngjo lost fifty happy points.

"You did it for the hell of it? For the laughs? So I could forever be marked down as an arsonist?" I asked as my voice cracked. "Tell me... which is it?"

"Myeong, put the knife down. We don't need weapons in this conversation." said Youngjo as his body trembled.

"Shut up! You wanted to ruin me, didn't you? You were upset with me, weren't you? That everyone wanted to hang out with me and ate up all of our time together. Well guess what, this is what you've created. I hope you rot in hell." I said then widened my steps towards him.

"Myeong... drop the knife and calm down. None of that is true." he said hurriedly. "If you'll just listen to me, I'll explain."

"You had your chance to explain, asshole. It's about time I killed you." I said seething with anger.

"Do you really want to go to jail and be labeled a murderer?" Youngjo said frantically as I picked up my pace.

"As if I haven't already been labeled an arsonist!" I shouted then threw the knife.

It missed and clattered to the ground. Youngjo quickly picked it up then pointed it at me. I kept still.

"Then, if it'll make you happy again, I'll do it for you so your hands won't be dirtied." he said then positioned the knife by his neck.

Tears unwillingly spilled out of my eyes as I watched. Was he serious? He couldn't be. He started to move the hand that held the knife. I bolted from my spot. I covered my face as I couldn't watch the rest of it.

Dongmyeong gains thirty happy points.  
Youngjo gains forty happy points.


	20. Seoho pov

Everywhere was glitching terribly. Was it starting to break down? I hurried down the block and nearly fell into a hole in the ground. I had to get to Harin's stat. I went around the hole and saw his house within sight.

I panted heavily as I rang his doorbell. I was used to seeing him greet me, but this time it was his sister.

"Is Rin not home?" I asked while peeking inside.

"Gimme ten bucks and I'll tell you." she said then held her hand out.

I rolled my eyes then pushed her aside. I wandered down the hall and stood before his bedroom door. I turned the knob and saw him sitting on his bed reading a book.

"Oh, hey Seo." he said with a grin.

I gave him a smile back. If anything, Rin hadn't changed in the slightest. I placed my bag in his chair then flipped down next to him on the bed. He surprised me with a hug and held me tight.

"What's with the sudden hug...?" I asked despite liking the gesture.

I heard a sound come from the door. I looked towards it then wondered if it was the wind. He let me go then closed the book.

"Why did you come here? I thought you were busy." Harin said while putting the book back.

"I got a bad feeling, so I finished quickly and came here." I said then fidgeted. "Are you upset that I came without warming...?"

"A little." he said then sat down next to me. "So, what's wrong?"

"It's glitching terribly outside. I'm worried that people might seriously get hurt." I said while looking outside. "Oh? Is that Ju?"

I opened the window then called out to Dongju who was walking down the block. He turned around and waved before walking away again.

"I wonder why he's around here. Is he here to see Geonhak? He does live a few blocks down..." I said then closed the window. "Anyway, the point is, things are dangerous and we should tell people now."

"I am concerned about everyone too, but who's to say they'll believe us? Think about it, Seo." said Harin with a frown.

"But we have to try!" I shouted, unbelieving that my boyfriend wasn't on my side.

"Seo, if that's everything you need to say, please leave." he said coolly. "I'm not in the best of moods."

"Rin... is it because of me...?" I asked quietly.

"Something like that." he replied then gestured for me to leave.

So I did. As I closed his bedroom door, a received a distress text from Giwook. Apparently Yonghoon wasn't home. I didn't see what the problem was until he called me. Giwook never called anyone unless it was important.

"Help me find him, please! I don't want to imagine what he's planning to do..." Giwook said in tears.

"He's really blessed to have a caring friend like you, Gi. So, what do you know so far?" I asked as I jogged down the block.

"His uncle said that he said he was going to hang out with friends at the beach, but he never said which, You know how long it takes to get to any beach around here." he said with sniffles. "I know you don't know him well, but..."

"Let's get more people on this. The two of us alone will produce minimal results." I said then hung up.

I searched for beaches and told Giwook which I was heading to so we wouldn't overlap. The bus ride would be long, but it'd be worth it if it meant keeping Yonghoon alive another day.

동동

I arrived at the beach and looked around for a familiar dark haired guy. I asked around if anyone had seen him. Giwook had sent me a photo of what he wore the day before, since he was positive Yonghoon didn't change. The people I asked didn't seem to have seen him. A part of me worried that he was at another beach.

I sighed then continued to ask newcomers and others who I hadn't gotten to yet. I decided to take a break and headed off towards the water. I looked out then noticed a person far off to the left away from the sight of others. I dropped my things and took off my socks and shoes before heading into the cool water.

"Yonghoon!" I shouted as I had gotten close enough to see. "What are you doing out here?"

He looked at me with his lifeless eyes. He looked down and suddenly started to flail around in a panic. I didn't understand as he was perfectly fine before.

"Hoon, come here." I said then had him hold onto me. I slowly swam back as Yonghoon weighed quite a bit. "What were you thinking..."

He let go once his feet were able to touch the shoreline. I looked at him and was surprised to see that he had changed his outfit unlike what Giwook suspected. His wet bangs covered his eyes. I wasn't sure what to say to him.

"Hand." he whispered then held out his hand.

I held it then watched as had me sit down with him. He didn't seem intent on going anywhere. I dialed Giwook's number and let him know I had found him. He hung up after saying he was in the way. I glanced at Yonghoon who stared out at the sea.

"The weather isn't exactly warm you know... You can catch a cold." I said, hoping to relieve some of the tension.

He didn't say anything. I looked at our hands and wondered why he wanted to hold mine. There were many things I didn't know about him.

"Mom..." he whispered then tightened his grip on my hand. "She's still out there..."

"Yonghoon, your mother left Earth years ago... along with your father." I said then regretted it when he started to cry.

"Everyday I want to see them. To see Mina. I miss them. I miss their warm smiles and hearts. I miss their soothing comforts..." he said while sobbing.

"I don't think they'd be happy if you ended your life so soon because you miss them. Your mom risked her life so you could live, doesn't that say something?" I said then realized he didn't know I knew. "At least, I assume one of your parents did."

He sobbed harder as he held my hand tightly. It was probably best he took time off of school and sought out therapy. I didn't know how much longer he'd last this way.


	21. Myeong pov

I looked to my right and saw Dongju nodding off beside me. I couldn't help but wonder what he was doing that made him so tired. Did he play when I slept? Asking him probably wouldn't result in anything. I nervously picked up the controller then felt it vibrating tremendously. What was going on? My character hadn't come onto the screen ever since I closed my eyes. Did I die? I couldn't have if I was still alive and breathing. Did Youngjo die? I would never know until it showed me.

"Ju... I think I killed him..." I mumbled as I shook his body.

He jolted awake then looked at me.

"Killed who?" he asked sleepily.

"Jo... Nothing has shown up for hours..." I said then looked at the screen. "I didn't mean for it..."

"Yet you bullied him. Pretty sure that's what you wanted." Dongju said harshly.

"I wasn't serious about it! I was just upset that after everything, I still cared about him! It just hurt so much..." I said then started to sob.

Dongju shook his head then opened his arms. I instantly threw myself into them. I never truly hated Youngjo. All I was doing was venting my frustration and pain of being betrayed by him. And now, here I sat, facing the consequences of not being honest and resorting to violence. I sobbed loudly into Dongju's chest then heard a sound come from the TV.

"Oh? There's something you should see." he said then had me look at the TV screen.

Youngjo made it.

Tears streamed down my face as the words repeated in my mind. Youngjo made it. He wasn't dead. Youngjo wasn't dead. A strangled noise escaped my throat as I continued to stare at the now black screen.

"Don-" Dongju started until I cried louder. "Get a hold of yourself."

I started breathing in short breaths as a result from all of the crying. Dongju slapped my back and managed to get me breathing back to normal.

"Press A." he said then handed me my controller.

I pressed A. The screen started to gain color and soon the scene was before us. Youngjo and Dongju were standing by a hospital bed. I was in said bed. I didn't look in too bad of shape.

"You idiot, why didn't you just say drop it? I swear I'd hit you if you weren't already injured..." Youngjo said.

I looked at Dongju who didn't say anything. Soon I felt a pain in my side and on my chest.

"Don, what's wrong?" he asked then gasped. "Oh my god."

I looked at him then followed his gaze. My shirt had bloodstains on it. That explained the pain, but why was it happening now? The bleeding wouldn't stop nor the pain.

"Why isn't it stopping?" Dongju asked no one in particular in a panic.

The pain subsided and the bleeding slowed to a stop. My shirt was almost dyed red. A part of me figured I had received stab wounds when trying to get the knife away. Though, I never thought I'd get them in real life. We turned our attention back to the screen.

"Well, now you know how he really feels." Dongju said before shaking his head at me. "If only he was more honest with his feelings."

"You make it sound like he died." Youngjo said.

"Probably better off dead." said Dongju.

I glared at Dongju who raised his hands in defense.

"I didn't type it." he said with an innocent look.

"Likely story. I'll deal with you later." I said then continued on with the conversation.

We continued to watch the scene play out until I was left alone with Youngjo. I didn't need to look to know that Dongju wasn't beside me.

"Wake up, Myeong..." pleaded Youngjo.

I remained perfectly still.

"Please..." he begged then held my hands. "I'll let you do whatever you want to me, whether violent or sexual acts."

I still didn't move. Was he serious about the latter part? Considering he nearly attempted to kill himself, I wouldn't put it past him. My eyes widened as he planted a kiss on my forehead, a gesture he's never done before. Despite it, nothing happened. Maybe I somehow fell into a coma. He shed a few tears before I opened my eyes. I could see he desperately wanted to hug me.

"Youngjo..." I said.

"I was so worried about you. There was so much blood and you weren't moving and I just lost it... I haven't gotten a wink of sleep." he said while squeezing my hand. "I'm so glad you opened your eyes."

"You worry too much... you shouldn't worry about me anyway. I was awful towards you. I even threatened you with a knife." I said then pulled my hand away. "Let's end this once and for all..."

"What are you saying...?" he asked.

"Let's go back to when we didn't know each other. You can go ahead and tell your parents what I've done. I'm willing to accept the consequences. You deserve a life without me in it to ruin it." I said quietly.

My chest hurt terribly. My mind was already thinking of rumors spreading to others schools, warning students about how I bullied a student and nearly killed him. Youngjo flicked my forehead. He was crying.

"If I haven't said anything before, why would I now? I want you in my life, idiot. I know this is going to sound utterly stupid, but I don't care what you do to me. As long as you exist in my life, I'll power through anything. Even another year of bullying..." he said then covered his face. "I have it bad for you, Myeong. It's obvious now. Who in their right mind would want to stick by the person who hurts them?"

I sat up in the hospital bed and looked at him. He was a sorry sight. A part of me felt bad that he fell for such an awful person such as I. I may never know why he had me take the blame, but he must've truly regretted it if he was willing to put up with all of this.

"Jo, why did you tell them it was me?" I asked as I deserved to know the truth.

"Will you believe me?" he asked.

"Yeah. You don't have anything to gain from lying." I said then braced myself for the truth.

"I was stricken with worry about you when you took off. So, I unintentionally said your name as I was half listening to them. I did try to go back and tell them I made mistake. but they told me I shouldn't cover for my friends. I never meant for it to happen..." Youngjo said with his head held low. "I'm sorry."

"Why didn't you tell me sooner...?" I asked.

"I was afraid. A coward. So when you started bullying me, I just went along with it. I deserved it." he said then sat back.

"You didn't deserve it... maybe a few hits, but not an entire year of torture." I said, feeling utterly guilty.

"Are we... cool now...?" asked Youngjo.

"Yeah." I replied then gave him a smile.

Dongmyeong gains forty happy points.  
Youngjo gains sixty happy points.


	22. The Missed Tutorial

"Ju, lets take a look." I said then pressed A.

"If something bad happens, it's your fault." he said then sat back.

Text appeared on the screen and we started to read.

"'Welcome to your life! Every choice you make and every word you say creates a ripple effect. Mind your words and actions.'. As if people don't tell us in real life." I said with a roll of my eyes. I pressed A and new text appeared. "Everyone starts off with 100 happy points. Happy points are considered equal to someone's life. Don't let them drop too far."

I looked at Dongju who seemed just as surprised. I pressed A, hoping there was more to it.

"'The lower the points, the more likely they are to get hurt or die. Treat them nicely! You can give people any amount of happy points once per day, but you can't give more than you have.'. Oh my... that sounds useful." I said then pressed A. "'Here are stats. You can access this from an app on your phone. You can view information on people and what their current happy points are. You can view stats once every two days per player."

I sighed and felt thankful that I decided to look at the tutorial first. I didn't want to imagine going in blindly. I looked at Dongju who took notes. It was a pretty smart move. I pressed A, assuming that was the end of what we needed to know.

"'If all of your friends die, so do you. Next, we will show you examples of everything we've talked about.'. Eh, so we can't let anyone die." I mumbled then pressed A.

The screen turned black and soon characters who looked like ya and our friends were standing on the roof with a few others. Yonghoon sat on the edge. I looked at Dongju who seemed more worried than I was. Soon screams were heard and I turned my attention back to the screen. Yonghoon wasn't on screen anymore. Soon a textbox appeared saying Yonghoon had died. It showed his happy points. Negative 80.

"'Anyone with less than negative 74 happy points will die 8 hours later.'. That's a longer duration than I thought." I said then pressed next.

It then displayed the stats and other things like a calendar and the time. A blue textbox appeared, signaling we had reached the end of the tutorial. A part of me was grateful as it seemed to have taken longer than expected. After the blue box disappeared, a pink one appeared.

Everyone lost thirty happy points.

"What? What for? Just for viewing the tutorial? That's dumb as hell." I raged before being calmed by Dongju.

"Maybe it was something else. Let's just see where the game puts us, okay?" he said then had me press A.

Our characters were in a room that looked creepily similar to our own. I moved the control pad and watched as the character on the left moved. I placed the controller down to stretch then freaked out when my character did the same thing.

"Did it copy me...?" I asked slowly.

"Yeah." said Dongju who kept his eyes on his own moving character. "They mimic our movements huh?"

"I wonder if it applies in public too." I said then started dancing in my seat. It started to become amusing.

"Alright, alright, lets stop messing around and start playing. And remember, try to avoid decreasing happy points. If they die, we die." Dongju said then moved towards the door.

A phone started to ring and my controller was the one to vibrate. A text box popped up asking if I wanted to answer. I chose yes.

"'A text from Youngjo. Hey, you better stop before I retaliate.'. The hell?" I said then noticed I was given the option to write my own reply.

"Myeong... isn't that a bit cruel?" Dongju said as I hit send.

"It's just a game. Sure they mimic us, but it doesn't apply to real life. I think." I said then read the text that showed up on screen. "'Minus fifty happy points with Youngjo.'. As if I care."

We moved our characters down stairs and saw our parents were arguing. What about was a mystery to us. Dongju's controller vibrates and he was given choices. He selected end the argument and ended up getting a slap to the cheek for being out of line. Though, he did get ten happy points for trying. What were happy points anyway? A part of me started to regret not asking for the tutorial.

"Hey, you got another text." said Dongju.

I viewed it then noticed it was from Yonghoon. I looked at Dongju who seemed just as upset as I was. Something seemed to have happened that he sent such a depressing text. I responded how I normally would then saw another text box appear above the chat.

"'Minus twenty happy points.' What? How was it a bad thing? This game sucks." I spat before pouting.

"At least you didn't get slapped..." he mumbled before moving his character outside.

I noticed a few things appeared on the screen. The date, time, weather and a tiny calendar. I went to the calendar and started to feel uneasy again. It resembled ours closely. I looked at Dongju who seemed just as uncomfortable. The time matched ours exactly. Someone new had walked up to our characters and soon a textbox appeared.

"'Hey, I was just about to invite you to a party, Dongmyeong. How about it?'. Uh..." I read then looked at Dongju.


	23. Dongju pov

I looked at Dongmyeong who slept peacefully. Things seemed to be okay within the game. He and Youngjo were the talk of the school. Different rumors of what happened that night spread like a wild fire. What made it funny was that none of the rumors were remotely correct. However, seeing Dongmyeong happier than he used to be made me happy. Though, the happiness was only temporary as there were still problems that lurked in the shadows of our friend group.

Yonghoon had ultimately given up and ran from home as well. It didn't take Giwook long to locate him and convince him to live with him. Myeong, Hwan and Giwook hardly talked to each other. I could understand him and Hwan, but what happened that put distance between him and Giwook? Geonhak had started to miss school too. His parents were just as confused as they always saw him leave for school. No one could get in touch with him, not even Seoho.

Then there was my own problem. Sneaking around with someone else's boyfriend. I couldn't understand why they couldn't break up already. I couldn't help but laugh at times at Seoho's naivety. Though, if what Harin and I were doing got out, it'd ruin the group all together. So I sort of understood why he wanted to wait. The TV made a noise, jolting me out of my thoughts.

"'Gameplay evaluation'? What are they planning to evaluate..." I muttered then shook Myeong. "Wake up, something's happening."

He slowly sat up then stretched. His gaze rested on the screen and soon he was on alert.

"What is this?" he asked as if I knew.

"Well, I didn't want to find out without you." I said then pressed A. "'Did you find the game fun?'. Uh, Myeong..."

"What are we playing? Interview? This is ridiculous." he grumbled before selecting no on his side.

I selected no as well. It then asked us if we felt if our problems were solved. Myeong selected yes, I said no. It then asked us if we'd ever play again. We both selected no without hesitation. Being trapped in our room for god knows how long and being forced to view ugly truths weren't the best experiences. The screen turned black and we waited.

"You know, I'm a bit nervous. What if everything that happened is applied to real life?" he asked.

"I'm sure it's already happened. You cut marks are key." I said.

Words appeared on the screen in a pink box. One death occurred during your gameplay. We looked at each other with worry. Who was it? We went through a list of people in our mind but couldn't come up with anyone. We hoped the game would tell us. It changed to a stats screen and displayed all of our happy points.

"Oh... when did you get so low, Don?" I asked curiously.

"Eheh... lets just keep going." he said, obviously avoiding my question.

Check marks appeared beside a few of our friends, but x's outnumbered the check marks. What did they mean? Keonhee, Kanghyun and Yonghoon were the only ones without x's. We continued on and were greeted with a black screen. Soon the title screen appeared and many things had changed. Keonhee and Kanghyun were playing checkers instead of fighting. Yonghoon was sleeping on Giwook's lap instead of sinking in water. Youngjo was eating ice cream with a bright smile. The others were pretty much the same.

"Are we done...? Can we...?" Myeong asked then left his spot to try the door.

It opened. He sprinted out of the room, shouting at the top of his lungs. Not too long after, our mother yelled for him to quiet down. I crawled over to the console and successfully ejected the game. I put it back in its case then debated whether to put it away or find a way to destroy it.

"Ju, come down quick! Mom brought ice cream!" Dongmyeong shouted then dashed away.

I felt a smile creep onto my face as I placed the game on our gaming shelf.

"Coming!" I shouted then hurried out the room.

We never fully understood the game's true intentions, but in reality we never would. The game had mysteriously disappeared once we had arrived back in our room after enjoying a bowl of cool ice cream.


End file.
